


Neutral (Danny Fenton/Phantom x Reader)

by Note_Worthy



Category: Danny Phantom
Genre: Action, Angst, Canon-Typical Violence, Comedy, F/M, Fluff, Gen, Ghosts, Hints Are Everywhere, Humor, I will not apologize for my creation or what ever pain that it may cause your heart, If you came lookin for trash may I suggest a dumpster, Kind of slow updates sometimes?, LEMME BE HOENST this story is like a scavenger hunt, Minor Violence, Reader is an awkward dork, Reader is from The Ghost Zone but is not a ghost, Reader-Insert, Romance, Slow Build, Slow To Update, Supernatural Elements, Swearing, Time Travel, slow burn as fuck, symbolism out the ass
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-08-06
Updated: 2017-11-19
Packaged: 2018-12-11 20:24:23
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 9
Words: 12,853
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11721897
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Note_Worthy/pseuds/Note_Worthy
Summary: A girl is given a mission, and a time limit to complete it by. By going through with it, she is given a new life, a new home, new priorities and for the first time, she is given a choice.She can choose to stay neutral, watching life pass her by, never experiencing or intervening, or she can choose a side and fight for it."We are not predetermined. We are who we choose to become."





	1. Chapter One - Childhood

**Author's Note:**

> Quick warning, the first chapter is much shorter than what the rest will be like as it is basically an introduction to the story and is for backstory purposes.
> 
> Also I HIGHLY suggest that anyone wanting to read this story watch this video above before reading it ( https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xpnBYCR6-d4 ). You don't have to, this story can be read without watching it but this story includes things that are canon to the show, things meant to be canon by the show's creator Butch Hartman (but didn't make it into the show), and lastly, in this story Season 3 never happened and doesn't exist. Number one rule of the Danny Phandom, we don't talk about Season 3 (except D-Stabilized and Danny's ice core).
> 
> Hmm?
> 
> Phantom Planet? What's that?
> 
> Oh, and spoilers.
> 
> (duh..)

I don't remember how I got here.

I don't know when I came, and I don't know why.

The first clear memory that I can recall is floating in an abyss of green.

I saw doors suspended in the air, and I saw what I assumed to be monsters floating around below me. The thought of coming close to those monsters made a lump form in my throat as I did my best to go in a different direction. I floated far away until the monsters were only dots in the distance.

I didn't feel afraid or worried, I was simply confused. When I saw a tower on a chunk of land, gears turning all around it, I decided to try and aim on going there. I landed on the ground after a bit of trying to gain my balance in the air. Stumbling a little when I reached the doors, I noticed they were much larger than I was. I was going to place my tiny fist on the doors to knock, but my hand went right through it. I shrieked, and pulled my hand out, feeling it tingle as I did so.

Even though the sight shocked me, I did the action again but this time, I placed my entire arm into it.

I laughed, and proceeded to put my whole head through the door. I was expecting to see a room, but instead, the doors opened. A man was there, at least he looked like a man in a way, but his lack of legs told me otherwise. His arms lifted me up until we were face to face, blood red eyes were staring into mine.

"Right on schedule." He said, smiling a little. I tilted my head in confusion and wiggled my loose tooth with my tongue. The first words I ever said to him were,

"Are you a Smurf?"

He chortled and put me down inside the tower-like building, closing the big doors behind him.

"She is a danger to both worlds if she remains here." I heard a different person say. Another voice chimed in, "It's too much of a risk."

I looked to where I heard the voices.

Two green beings without faces in high collared capes stared back at me with the single large eye they both had in the center of their heads. The green creatures reminded me of green Jell-O and the gummy eyeballs you would get on Halloween.

They were talking about me, but I couldn't care less.

I looked back to the man who picked me up, surprised to see that he had a long beard and was hunched over a little now. I quickly became distracted by his tail, waving around. I got on my stomach beneath him and giggled while I waved my hand around in the space between him and the floor.

"She isn't a danger."

"But-" They both said in unison,

"I know what I'm doing." The purple covered Smurf man responded, his tone was calm and confident. When I looked up at him again, he had shrunk since my last glance. Right before my eyes, he grew again back into the form I had seen him in the first time. "Now, if you will let yourselves out, I have to accommodate my new guest."

And just like that, the green creatures teleported and were gone.

"Always getting me to do their dirty work...not this time." He looked down at me as I was busy with tugging at his purple cloak, the fabric soft between my figures. He cleared his throat and I looked up at him, big eyes glistening with curiosity.

"Hello, little one." His voice remained as calm as it was before. One of my hands released the cloth from my tight hold and waved at him, a gleeful grin making its way onto my face. "Hello!" I chimed back with enthusiasm.

He chuckled once more and held out his hand to me, "I am Clockwork, master of time."

I shook his gloved hand, my own hand looking even smaller in comparison. My childish joy didn't falter until it was my turn to introduce myself. What was my name? I didn't know. I fell silent, both hands dropping to my sides and looking at my small feet.

Clockwork pat my head, "Having trouble? Okay. Your name is (Y/N), you are four years old."

I beamed, feeling much better with the new information, but later in my years, something as simple as my own name raised more questions about who I was. "Are you my Daddy?"

He shook his head and his voice was serious, but there was just a hint of a smile was on his face, "No, but I am now your caregiver."

I remember putting my thumb in my mouth and sucking on it for a second, but pulling it out just as quick from the pain it brought to my loose tooth. "Who were the jelly floaties?"

"Those were the Observants; they employ me to do the work they refuse to."

Clockwork must've noticed my puzzled look as he then simplified his explanation, "They're ghosts, everyone here in the Ghost Zone are."

"Are the ghosts mean?"

Such an innocent question. I was too young to be prepared for the long and complicated history of the Ghost Zone, so Clockwork, in effort to keep me from danger or landing in the wrong hands responded with,

"Yes. But, you are safe from them here."

I nodded my head, I don't remember if I truly understood what he was telling me. I poked at a stop watch hanging off his cloak, "Are you a ghost, too?"

"Yes."

"Why do you look like a grandpa now?"

"Because, time affects me differently than anyone else. For me, time moves backwards and forwards and-"

"Why?"

"Because-"

When Clockwork's form switched to a child's again, he was within my reach. I placed my fingers over the crack like feature going through his eye, I had squealed with excitement. What was the point in having a detailed explanation planned when a four-year-old is the only one listening? I then focused my attention on his time controlling staff, but he changed back to an adult before I managed to touch it. "Ah, ah, ah, no touching my staff."

"Hmm, okay!"

He picked me up and floated over in front of a strange object with moving people on it. At the time, I thought it was a television but I later learned it was his view-screen. "You are the only thing standing between this world and the human world's destruction."

"Oh." This time, however, I remember clearly I had absolutely no idea what he was talking about and I didn't care.

"You'll understand one day."


	2. Chapter Two - Home

Clockwork had been prepared for my arrival long before I came here. I could tell because there were a stack of parenting and child care books on a bookshelf in my own bedroom. Speaking of bedroom, another way I knew was from the bed that was ready for me, big enough for me to grow into with time, clothes just the right size for my age, and extra clothes in various sizes ranging from 'It's a little big' to 'I'm never going to be that tall, you're kidding yourself' for when I got older. Almost all the shirts had long sleeves, say for a good armful of t-shirts and a couple tank tops.

At the time, I didn't know why, but I quickly figured out that it's extremely rare that the tower feels like it's at a comfortable temperature, it didn't take me long to understand why Clockwork wears a heavy cloak and gloves all the time. Ever since I got here, Clockwork told me to bundle up, always wear thick socks and a long sleeved anything over the outfit I was already wearing.

Never wear shorts or tank tops unless turning into a popsicle is your goal in life, and the fact that the tower is made of stone doesn't help the cold problem.

It also took me a while to get used to phasing through walls, there's a bit of a learning curve to it when you're as young as I was. I can't count how many times I almost fell through the floor, or phased through a wall out of the tower's safety by accident

Sure, it could've been a massive disaster if I had been kidnapped or something, but it never got that far out of hand.

However, the time I had my first run in with the Ghost Zone's greatest hunter, that was very close to what would have been filed under the massive disaster list.

It had probably been around two or three weeks after I was taken under Clockwork's wing when he had a meeting with the Observants. I've come to find that they bother him a lot, apparently, there's always something wrong in the world, something that they feel needs to be fixed.

So, Clockwork gave me some crayons, told me to stay put in the tower and to behave until he returned. I had nodded, saluting him and shouting, "Affirmative!"

I had sat still for what felt like hours, I drew a ghost face and put it on my head like a mask. I couldn't see out of it, but I stomped around in the tower making ghoulish noises and growls. At some point, I made myself float and phase through walls for a better experience playing pretend. Without realizing it though, I ended up phasing out of the tower and into the Ghost Zone. By the time I realized what I had done, I was at the point of no return.

Well, maybe not no return.

More like the point of 'It's going to be difficult getting back to the tower, I'm so small it's going to take forever, what have I done?!'.

I looked behind me.

The tower was so far, and I've never been this large of a distance away from home sweet home, let alone outside of the tower at all.

Clockwork said if I ever get lost, to stay where I am and he'll come find me.

And there I was, floating in the air with my legs crossed in a sitting position, with nothing to entertain me other than picking at the Velcro straps on my shoes.

Why is waiting so boring? How can adults put up with this?

It felt like I had been floating there for years, when it had probably been just three minutes, when I heard the whirring of jet packs. I turned around in confusion, just in time for a net to be thrown at my face and trap me. I had screamed when I saw what floated in front of me. A giant, metal ghost with flaming green hair, or what I assumed to be at least.

His hand picked up the net by its neck, where it was tied together by heavy balls on stings. The ghost untied it and pulled me out of it by the back of my shirt collar.

"A human?"

His other hand came up to my face, taking hold of my cheeks and turning my head from side to side.

"How curious. You must be a runt."

I swatted his hand away from my face and hissed through bared teeth, a few drops of spit landed on his dumb bucket head from the gap of where one of my front teeth finally fell out a few days ago.

"I'm four! Not a runt! Let me go, big dumb ugly head!"

His glowing eyes squinted at me, before roaring loudly in my face.

I squeezed my eyes shut as my hair flew around like his screaming was wind. When he was done with his attempt at making me scared, my foot flew up and knocked his head off his shoulders.

"That's rude!" I screeched at him, my eyes still closed, I could feel my face burning with irritation. When I opened them, I saw a small, no, tiny is a better word, green ghost staring back at me. His face reflected in both horror and anger, little green fists bunched up.

"I will destroy you, whelp."

I couldn't help but to laugh. I tried not to, honest, but it was just so funny. Here's this green twerp that's smaller than a four year old, six inches tall at the most, threatening to destroy me. But the funniest part that had made me audibly laugh was his voice. It went from dark and gruff to high and squeaky, like the guy sucked the helium out of birthday balloons.

"What?! Why are you laughing?!"

I smiled and shrugged, not wanting to hurt his feeling. Instead of continuing my giggle fit, I held out my finger to him.

"I'm (Y/N)!"

He glared, scrambling off the battle suit's neck and returned himself inside of his helmet before he reattached it to the rest of the body.

"I don't need to know your name, child!" His voice was deep again.

"That's okay. What's yours?"

He didn't answer, he grumbled instead and put me under his arm. "Runt or not, you'll still make a good addition to my collection."

I tilted my head and scratched my left cheek, they were still cold from his metal armor.

He stuck two chain bracelets on my wrists with his free hand, they began glowing green and connected themselves together like handcuffs.

Something behind him on his body made the whirring sound I heard earlier, but he didn't have a chance to take off with me, as he was interrupted by the voice of the best ghost in the whole Ghost Zone.

"I believe that's my child you're trying to kidnap, Skulker."

Skulker, I was assuming that was the metal ghost, turned around and looked at Clockwork with a puzzled expression, when he realized who it was, his eyes grew big and his mouth hung open a bit.

"This runt is your child?" Skulker asked in disbelief, and Clockwork simply nodded.

"Yes, and I would appreciate it if you would let her go."

Skulker easily complied, putting me down to float in the air. I flew to his side as fast as I could, spinning around to see Skulker's expression. He looked like he didn't know what was going on, but the ectoplasmic handcuffs disappeared off my wrists, allowing my hands to fall to my sides. I would've left them there, but my left hand reached for Clockwork's and I held it as tight as my small hand's grip could manage.

"I...I don't get it." He stated, still staring at us like we were aliens. It didn't need to be explained to me after that, that humans are foreign here. I was the first human to even enter the Ghost Zone.

"You don't need to. Don't do that ever again." Clockwork said sternly, pulling me with him as we floated back to the tower. I was afraid that Clockwork would be mad at me, but he knows everything, he knows it was an accident and I didn't have the intention of disobeying him.

Instead of a yelling fit that parents would normally do when their child didn't listen, Clockwork just sat with me on the floor for a while, telling me stories while I drew pictures for them to put in a little book that we would make ourselves.

One thing that has stuck with me since that day though, was that Clockwork called me his child.


	3. Chapter Three - Patch

Six months into living in the Ghost Zone, I began to get less and less sleep each night. I had graphic and vivid nightmares at night that scared me to the bone. I felt so scared and alone when I woke up, the things in my dreams were scary and threatening.

It was times like that, that made me wish I had a sibling or even just a friend.

I had crawled out of my bed when I went to seek Clockwork for comfort, he took one look at the crocodile tears pouring down my face and gave me a big hug.  
"Calm down. It was only a nightmare, (Y/N)." He soothed in a hushed voice.  
I had looked up at him as he wiped off the remaining tears from my face with the sleeve of his violet cloak.  
"Nothing can hurt you. It's not real."  
Unfortunately, even at that young of an age, I knew that even if the nightmare I had wasn't real, that didn't mean that it couldn't ever happen.  
Dreams do come true, but nightmares can too.

I didn't release him from my tight hug until I had fallen asleep on him half an hour later.

He must have laid me in my bed after I drifted off, because I was in my bed when I woke up in the morning.  
Clockwork and I played for most of the week, he taught me a game called patty cake where you smack your hands together in an organized handshake, singing a fun rhyme.

I became obsessed with it, randomly popping into the tower's main room where Clockwork spent almost all of his time, and ambushed him into playing the game.  
He didn't mind most times, he didn't do much after all, his job is mostly just watching the View Screen, keeping track of time and history.  
But sometimes, the door to the main room would be locked and Clockwork told me he was working on something, and to go play until his task for the day was complete.  
I obeyed until he opened the door again, where I continued to play pattycake with him. I noticed his gloves had extra padding in the fingers and there was a bit of ectoplasm seeping through the tips of the fingers.  
"What's that, Clockwork?"  
"It's just where I injured myself earlier." He stated calmly, as if telling a four year old wouldn't end with me offering what I did.  
"Aw! Should I kiss it better?"  
"No, it's fine."

"You promise?" I asked and held out my pinkie to him.

"Yes, I promise." Clockwork confirmed and shook my pinkie with his own.  
"Okay!"

His mysterious injuries persisted for days, almost a week, and my nightmares still remained in my brain anytime I fell asleep, but then everything changed when I went into my room at my bedtime one night.

I walked into my room in my new ghostly onesie, it was white like a sheet with green eyes on the hood. I got into my bed, shuffled under the sheets and felt a lump underneath my head.I reached under the pillow and pulled out a hand stitched teddy bear.

A soft pale green fur covered its body, its inner ears and paw pads were colored red, its eyes made of two gears sewn into the fuzzy material, a smooth red nose and a small stitched smile for a mouth. It even had its own cloak stitched together at the neck, made out of patches of different cloths, along with one of Clockwork's signature time medallions wrapped around its neck.

My eyes lit up with delight as I held my new best friend to my chest as tight as I could. I nuzzled my face into its fur, "I'm going to name you...Patch!" I pat his head as I spoke to Patch directly.

"Is that okay?"

I waited for a response.

Silence.

"Good! I'm glad you like it! I'm (Y/N), nice to meet you Patch!" I smiled and shook his paw.

Clockwork entered the bedroom to tuck me in after Patch and I learned more about each other. "Who's your new friend, (Y/N)?"

I screeched and smashed my cheeks together, "How rude of me! Clockwork, this is Patch!"

Clockwork smiled and pulled the blankets up to my chin, "Well I'm pleased to hear you have a bedtime buddy."

I clutched Patch to my chest and smiled, "Yeah! He can chase away my nightmares!"Clockwork nodded, "I'm sure he can."

Blowing out the lantern that was keeping the room lit, floating out the door, he closed it without another word.

Though I had my own Patch the Protector now, I was still a little weary of going to sleep, I laid there with my eyes shut for a bit. I was half asleep when I heard the door open, and could see the tower's low green lighting and the Ghost Zone's bright glow through my closed eyelids.I knew who it was, and he knew I was partly awake, but neither of us would address it later on.

Clockwork was hovering at my bedside, when he reached over and pat my head lightly. I couldn't help but to smile just a bit.

"It was worth the pain." He mumbled.

He stayed for a minute or two, and left for the rest of the night.

I pretended I didn't hear him, and he pretended he didn't know.


	4. Chapter Four - Celebration

Birthdays growing up weren't as bad as you may have expected them to be. Most children have a part or a get together of some sort, with friends and family, balloons and entertainment, cake, presents, maybe even a bouncy castle if you get lucky. While a traditional party like that would be nice, I would be lying if I said I would prefer that type of celebration over what I have in the ghost zone.

Here, ghosts organize my party, a different ghost each year. I wish the picking a ghost part was more civilized than just picking an age out of a hat, but I digress. Whether the ghost is friend or foe, they always take the liberty of giving the party their own personal spin and making it fun regardless of if they like me or not. And on top of that, my birthday is a different day each year depending on what day the party planning ghost finds most convenient and most fitting to my personality. It turns out that Skulker takes zodiacs very personally.

On my fifth birthday, it was a nice party at Clockwork's tower, quiet and simple yet fun.

After the tradition of randomizing my party planner and birthday came into play after that year, it began to get more interesting and dangerous.

Trust me, when a ghost plans your birthday party, something deadly or hazardous will be involved at some point during the day so Clockwork always takes precautions during these 'parties', as sometimes it can be an actual fight of life or death.

Don't even get me started on the time that time that Skulker insisted he teach me how to survive in the wild by throwing me to the wolves, quite literally, on his jungle island, that was also the first day I got tranquilized in the butt. Yes, there was more than one occasion.

On my eighth birthday, Technus decided to teach me about the wonders of the internet and memes.

That was a weird day.

For my tenth birthday, I was taken to my first concert, performed by Ember Mclaine herself. It was loud, so loud I couldn't hear myself speak, the music was good, Ember's voice was awesome, and at the end of the performance, confetti and balloons were exploded everywhere.

And on my twelfth, I was arrested by Walker's goons and spent the rest of the day running from the Ghost Zone fuz.

The food is, and always was, provided by the Lunch Lady. She nicknamed me Pumpkin when I was found on the floor with a pie tin on my head, while my hands, clothes and face were covered in the orange gooey pumpkin pie that I ripped out of the tin with my hands. I was six, and I have yet to live that down to this very day.

Birthday presents are always interesting as well...the birthday presents are received without knowledge of who gave me them, another perk of my birthday parties, where I get to guess who gave it to me based on what the present was. Some are more obvious than others.

But the best present I ever was given was on my fifth birthday, the one I spent with just Clockwork. He gave me stacks upon stacks of books for me to read, a new quilt for my bed, much heavier than my old one, and a golden pocket watch. The best one was the gift he saved for last, which was a deep green hooded cloak like his own, a gear shaped pin holding it closed. It was way too big for me, and he said I would wear it when the time was right.

He spent that day braiding my hair and reading some of the books to me until I fell asleep at night. He tucked me in my bed with my newly gifted quilt over me and gently pushed Patch under my right arm, pat my head and left the bedroom with the door cracked so I could see the green light of the view screen from the main room.

I remember I drowsily called after him, asking him to finish the last story he was reading, but he didn't come back to. It was my bedtime and there wasn't any sense in keeping me awake longer. And I'm sure my words were too incoherent to be decoded into any real words rather than sleepy babblings of a small child. I reached out my hand in the door's direction limply, like I was trying to pull him back.

But after a second, I gave up and let my fingers curl into the quilt, nuzzling my nose underneath it. The heat of my breath made it even warmer under it, and it felt nice considering how cold the tower can be.

When I woke up, there was a cupcake on my nightstand. I'm not sure who put it there, but I had my suspicions.

But, I surely didn't mind having a cupcake for breakfast!

I mean really, would anyone?

Needless to say, Clockwork wasn't pleased about finding me with frosting all over my hands, cheeks, nose and mouth.


	5. Chapter Five - Yearning

As I grew older, I learned more about the world around me. I've been taught about the Ghost Zone since I was seven. The history, how everything works, what disastrous things can happen, the areas of the Ghost Zone we can't see and the ghosts that exist here, including the legendary nomad that hasn't been heard from since he disappeared.

Clockwork has also managed to teach me about human history as well because of his infinite knowledge, but all that consisted of was war and law, which I didn't care for.

But most of all, I have been taught about time. After I was old enough, Clockwork finally gave me that speech on how he exists outside of time and he was able to teach me about time travel without me falling asleep through the explanation.

Let me enlighten you a little.

Life already knows what decisions you're going to make, and everything from now until your demise is going to happen no matter what. There are parallel universes, but this only can occur when something in this universe is forcefully changed.

For time travel to be possible, time loops continuously. You go back or forward to a certain moment in time, and for that to be possible, the moment of the day would still have to exist presently. Meaning that the past isn't really the past, it's just days no longer accessible to us unless we can travel back. The future is already set in stone, choices, actions, words, births and deaths.

The loop of that day will stay the same unless someone travels back or forward and changes something, even the smallest thing, and it will affect the entire timeline. This is the same for time traveling to the future as well- I'm boring you too, aren't I? Clockwork is right, being able to wrap your mind around how time works must be learned.

Anyway, I've learned a lot more about time than any being, other than Clockwork of course, is capable of knowing and understanding. One thing, however, that I never found out and Clockwork never explained was how I could age while existing outside of time. It's been ten years now since I arrived floating through the Ghost Zone alone.

I knew that day wasn't an accident, Clockwork was expecting me. Speaking of, Clockwork doesn't tell me everything. He says that I can't know about my own past because I'm not meant to, if I learn how I came here, it needs to be on my own.

Personally, I think that's a load of ectoplasm that I have to find out by myself, without any help, mind you.

It keeps me awake at night, sometimes.

I feel like I have amnesia, and it's erased my whole past from my brain up until I came here.

I don't even remember my own mother or father. Did I even have them? Did I only have one of the two? Did I have siblings or pets? How am I supposed to find out if I've never even been to the human world? Endless questions like that make me think I might never find my family, if I even have one.

All these questions and yet here I am, fourteen years old and have never even seen another human in person. Pathetic, right? The only way I can see anyone of my own species is through Clockwork's view screen.

As of right now in fact, I'm watching people on it.

It's a brunette boy at the dinner table with his two brothers, sister and parents.

They're talking about their family reunion they'll have around the holidays. The dad makes a cheesy joke and the whole family groans, but a few snickers are heard as well.

I smile, "That's such a lame joke, you need a new sense of humor!"

Their conversation continues as it had been before, they couldn't even hear me after all. They continue talking and the subject of school and grades come up.

A longing sigh escapes my lips, I don't know why I torture myself like this with a fantasy I'll never get to have.

"(Y/N), may I speak with you for a moment?"

I look at him from the corner of my eye, Clockwork floating a few feet away from me.

I shrug, "I don't have anything better to do."

He chuckled, "I know."

Of course, he does.

Turning to face him with a look of curiosity in my eyes, I open my mouth to ask what he needs to say but he cuts me off. "I have a bit of a...task for you."

No big deal, I've helped Clockwork and other ghosts plenty of times. I nod my head confidently, "Sure thing. What'cha need?"

Clockwork smiled, his form shifting to elderly, "How would you feel about going to the human world?"


	6. Chapter Six - Agreement

"The human world? I mean, I'd like to...but why would you ask that?"

Clockwork floated over to the viewscreen, and waved his staff across it. The screen changed from the family at the dinner table to a bird's eye view of a town.

"I have a task for you."

I've helped Clockwork with his job plenty of times before, he says it's a good way to learn about time hands on, so I usually know what to expect even if these jobs are more spread out than they sound.

But this time, it felt different. I've never actually had to go anywhere to help him, I just stay by his side while he fixes what needs to be fixed and I look out for any possible interferences.

"This is Amity Park, where you will be staying for the next year."

"A year? Why?"

Clockwork solemnly nodded, and beckoned me over with his hand. I floated over to the screen.

"There is a boy there you need to protect for me."

I nodded, I could do that. A year in the human world wouldn't feel half as long as a year in the Ghost Zone. Without the sun and moon to represent day or night, it's difficult to really keep track of the days, they all seem to blend together.

You wake up, and the Ghost Zone is green. You go to sleep, and it's still green.

"Who is it?"

Clockwork's staff waved over the viewscreen once more, zooming in on two boys and a girl walking on a sidewalk.

It zoomed in again on just one of the boys, the pale one out of the two.

"What's so special about him? Does he end up making a cure all known diseases or bring world peace?"

"This boy is half human, half ghost, (Y/N)."

I could feel my jaw hang open when I had to shake myself out of my own thoughts. Get a grip, there's already a half human half ghost hybrid, it was bound to happen again sooner or later.

"He uses his powers for protecting the town he lives in from ghost attacks."

"That's nice, I suppose. What does he need protecting from?"

"There are many dangers that you will need to look out for, but mainly, his parents."

"Why would he need protection from his parents?"

Clockwork turned and looked me in the eyes. He looked disturbed, which was something Clockwork rarely expresses. Normally, his face is calm and neutral, I've seen him smile or smirk a good amount of times, but I've never seen him look so...

"His parents and the citizens of Amity Park don't know of his secret, except for his two best friends. His parents are ghost hunters, and their goal is to experiment on and dissect his ghost persona."

His explanation took me by surprise, and I felt my gut twist uncomfortably in disgust, my eyes were wide and unblinking.

"...They'd actually do that to ghosts?"

"They've come close before."

Bile rises in my throat. I would say he's kidding, but I know he wouldn't joke about something so tragic. That, and he has a dry sense of humor.

"So, what? I protect him for a year from his parents and I'm home free?"

"Yes. But (Y/N), you must understand before you agree to this that there are other things you'll have to protect both himself and yourself from. And this is very dangerous."

I fell silent while I thought over my options.

"If you refuse to do it, that's fine. I would just prefer it to be that way."

And I know what he meant by that, he wants me to be with humans and experience life outside the Ghost Zone for a while.

"Where would I stay and how would I pay for necessitates?"

"I would take care of it. Money, however, would be your responsibility to make."

"Would I have to attend high school?" I ask and place my feet firmly on the floor, the trick I use for not phasing through the hard tiles.

"Yes."

"Last question. Would I still be able to be in touch with you?"

Clockwork smiled a little, I was considering my options heavily and he knew it.

"Unfortunately, no."

My growing grin fell. I was so close to saying, 'No, I'm not doing this. It's not worth being away from you.'

"But, his parents have a portal to the Ghost Zone. If you manage to gain access to it, you could come visit me, and I'll be watching you every step of the way."

I'd never be alone. Depending on the way you look at it, it could be both a negative or positive. But as of now, it's positive.

I take a deep breath in and exhale.

"I'll do it."

And for the first time in my life, I'm worried.


	7. Chapter Seven - Fabrication

Leaving the Ghost Zone for the human world is like leaving your hometown for college. It's temporary and you know it, but it doesn't stop the aching in your heart and the tears rolling down your cheeks.  
When I walked out of the Ghost Zone through one of its natural portals, the thought came to me that I’m getting what I've wanted for so long growing up, but at the same time, it hurt more than I expected it to.  
Hugging Clockwork as tight as I could, he pressed a piece of paper into my palm as I said goodbye and stepped out of my one true home. For a second, I thought about turning around, taking my luggage, and hauling ass back to the only place I've ever known.  
But I didn't.  
I waited a second too long and when I turned around, the portal was gone. My one-way ticket back home was gone.  
My shoulders slumped and adjusted the weight of my filled duffle bag, turning back to take in my surroundings.  
Green grass, blue sky, hard pavement underneath my feet, brick buildings next to me.  
I was in the town of Amity Park, I assumed.  
I opened the folded piece of paper Clockwork had given me, the one holding the address of my temporary home written inside. Looking up for the street I was on, I tried to assure myself I won't be lost for long. I had figured I’d be wasting daylight just wandering about the town trying to find the street I was looking for, so I grabbed the arm of the closest person that walked past me on the sidewalk.  
The fabric I took hold of was the sleeve of a letterman jacket, and a high school aged Asian boy looked over his shoulder to see me and the hope of someone nice enough to help filling my (E/C) eyes.  
“Hi, I’m sorry to bother you but do you know where this address is?” I asked, my hand let go of his arm and forced itself into the pocket of my jeans unexpectedly. Touching another person was strange, I didn't know how I felt about it.  
The confused boy took the paper out of my hand and looked it over, “Elm Street is a few blocks down from here. If you end up at the pizza parlor, you went too far.” He returned the paper to me while I smiled.  
“Thanks, I appreciate it…”  
“Kwan.” He answered with a grin.  
“Yes, thank you Kwan. I’m (Y/N).”  
“Are you new around here, or just visiting?”  
I hesitated to respond and pushed the paper into my other pocket.  
“I just moved in, actually.”  
“Oh cool, are you going to go to Casper High after Summer break?”  
“I am. Can you be honest if I ask you something?" He nodded. "How do you like it here?”  
Kwan shrugged a bit, looking away at a few other guys down by what looked like a park, playing football. A blonde one was waving him over. “It feels big until you get used to it, then you know everyone by name. That being said, you stick out like a sore thumb.”  
Joy.  
“Hey! Kwan! Get over here!”  
Kwan looked back over to me briefly.  
“It was nice meeting you (Y/N), if you ever need a friend at Casper High, you know who to look for.” He smiled and shook my hand before he ran back over to his group.  
I pulled my hand out of my pocket and wrapped it around my suitcase handle, pulling it down the street until I reached my destination.  
The house I came to was a small, one story, just big enough for maybe two people, if you didn't mind constantly bumping elbows, that is. As much as I told myself that it could be a 'beauty is on the inside' situation, the outside of it was disappointing enough to make me doubt that. Dead, dried up grass was in the front yard, littered empty Styrofoam slushy cups and chip bags were strewn about and weeds popping out of every place imaginable on the ground. The paint covering the outside of the house was a faded gray with a bluish hue, it was beginning to chip from old age, while the roof looked like it could cave in on itself during a small storm. Even the sad little dented and rusty garbage can looked like it was ready to give up.  
Indeed, this damaged house that looks like it has been through every kind of storm imaginable (and then some) was going to be my temporary home, I could tell from the red and white wooden ‘sold’ sign in the yard. I'm not sure what strings Clockwork had to pull to make this house mind legally, and I highly doubted that whatever way he had gotten it was less than admirably civil, it's still my home.  
At least it’s still standing, that’s a plus.  
I walked up the porch steps, the wood creaking every with step, I had opened the door and walked in.  
Right off the bat, the stench of mothballs and dust hit my nose hard enough to make me sneeze as soon as the door opened, its rusted bolts squeaking almost painfully.  
It was cramped on the inside, as I expected, a small hallway, dust covered white sheets that were placed over furniture so heavily that the sheets looked as though they'd turned gray. Peering into the kitchen, the stove looked old but still usable, and the refrigerator didn’t look in bad shape at all, a mini calendar hung on the freezer door by a single magnet. The first day of school was circled a week and a half from now.  
“Not too bad.” My voice echoed down the hall when I looked in the single bedroom off the left-hand side, directly across from the one and only bathroom. It was in a similar shape as the rest of the place, the smell of old books accompanied the mothballs in this room however. A bronze key laid on the mattress, the light that was coming through the thin white curtains hanging over the windows.  
This isn't that horrible, it's fine, I’ll be okay.

~★☆★~

As much as I love receiving and eating free casseroles and pies from kind neighbors, I couldn’t keep living off it as my only food source. I can last for a few more days, until school starts, but after that I’m going to have to come up with a plan for making money. As of ghost activity, it had been tame, just the Box Ghost here and there, and the occasional ghost octopus. Honestly, I’m not sure how I’m surprised to get close enough to that boy to insert myself into his life, especially to get him to trust me enough to tell his secret. If you can even call it that, the similarities to him and his alter ego are so obvious I question everyone’s IQs in this town.  
I haven’t been getting much sleep either, I miss the sounds of clocks and gears turning from Clockwork’s tower more than I thought I would.  
The first night here, I was unpacking my things, choking on dust, and driving myself mad trying to find those damn mothballs to throw them out. I woke up slumped over the couch, being blinded through my closed eyelids by the sun.  
I’ve been spending most of my time outside, I just can’t get over how amazing the sun feels, and how warm. And a good thing I’ve found near me is a cute little pet store on the corner a few streets down, a ten-minute walk from my house at most. I’m sure I made a lovely impression on the employees by trying to phase through the doors rather than opening it. What I thought was the best part is that there was a pen on the floor where they’d let you play with, pet, or hold any of the animals in the store. Except for the birds, of course. They’re surprisingly noisy and active to be such little things. But, I’m thinking that I’ll apply for a job there when food starts to get low.  
Being responsible sucks but I love it, I love the freedom, I think I love all of this. It’s worth being a little homesick.  
My nights have been quiet and nice, I don’t leave the house after nightfall, I may be beginning to like it here but I’m not stupid enough to go out alone at night with ghosts roaming around. Curled up on the couch, re-reading The Body, a classic King novella for probably the hundredth time, with Patch tucked safely under my arm. Eating the occasional forkful right out of the casserole dish without bothering to heat it up in the oven first.  
That changed the night before my first day of school, I didn’t get to sleep until two in the morning, worrying about every detail, from the big to the minuscule. I don’t have any school supplies, or a backpack, the only thing I have close is my duffle bag that I stuffed my clothes into before I left. Wouldn’t I look stupid, just walking in there with nothing but an empty duffle bag and a hopeful smile.  
Well, looks like that’s just going to have to be what happens.

~★☆★~

I felt like I was a lamb walking to the slaughter house when I was going to the principal’s office, students were having no shame in staring and whispering amongst each other about my presence, yet not one person had the courage to greet me formally.  
I didn’t stop myself from opening the door to Ishiyama’s office when I got there though, she gave me a look that made me want to squirm right where I stood, but I forced my body to be as stiff as a board. I said that I was the new student, (Y/N) Messer.  
“Where is your backpack?”  
I sheepishly held the duffle bag out in front of me. “That’s empty.” She stated.  
I nodded, avoiding her eyes when I felt judgment radiating off her vision. It was the same feeling I had when all those teens were looking at me, walking down the hall.  
“Moving here took every penny we had,” I mumbled.  
If I’m going to make it through this, I’m going to need to start using my fear of all these people to my advantage, starting with making my backstory. I thought of all the doubt I could muster in my head, every remotely sad thought that came to mind, and just like magic, my eyes were filling with tears and a few were rolling down my cheeks when I looked up at her again.  
I couldn’t tell if it was pity or empathy in her eyes now, but whatever it was, her right hand fluttered over her heart while her eyebrows knitted together.  
“Oh, hon,” She breathed quietly, and I began to feel guilt bubble in my soul, I already don’t like where this is going. God, I really don’t.  
Lying isn’t my favorite pastime by any means, but I’m going to need to get used to the feeling, and I’m going to have to be careful of what I say, or my backstory is going to become a web that I’ll undoubtedly get tangled in. Not that it’ll matter overall, I’ll just slip out when my time is over and it’ll be like I was never here, but for the sake of keeping relationships to people, I should anyway. She searched through her desk and grabbed a key, walking to a closet in the room to open. When she did, she took a blue and green backpack, one of several others, off a hook and started to fill it with school necessities and textbooks, “Before school starts, we have a charity drive where residents of Amity Park donate school supplies in case someone needs them.”  
Charity. Donate.  
Where ever I may land on my death bed, I’m taking this crap to my grave.  
She scurried to her desk after she was done, shuffling through papers and taking a single slip and handing it to me. I read it while she hit the print button on her computer, I assumed she was printing my schedule, a late permission slip. Just as the words registered, I heard the bell ring. I suppose she heard it too, because she started moving faster, handing me my secondhand backpack, forced the schedule in my other hand, and shooed me out the door.  
“I’ll be sure to have the vice principal sign you up for free lunches while you’re in class, but your first period is English with Mr. Lancer. He already knows you’re coming but keep that slip on you so you won’t get in any trouble trying to find your other classes. By the end of the day we’ll have a locker set up for you, right now we’re doing our best to find an open one.”  
“Thank you- “  
She had her hand on my shoulder and walked me down to the English classroom, I took the time to look around, noticing how long and complicated the halls were. It’s going to take some getting used to for me to be able to find places as easily as she is.  
Before she opened the English classroom door, she knocked first, and the chatter from inside the room had silenced itself. All eyes were on me, again, just as before. Maybe this wasn’t the best idea, I probably looked like an alien to these kids. Not literally, but I sure as the light of day didn’t look like any of them. Kwan was right, I do stand out, and as of now, I don’t feel like it’s a good thing. I can feel these people trying to read me, try to judge me before they’ve spoken to me, try to guess what I’m thinking right this very moment.  
“Ah, Miss Ishiyama,” The teacher, Mr. Lancer, smiled, “is this her?”  
I didn’t need to turn my head to know that she nodded, squeezing my shoulder gently and guiding me forward into the classroom further, past the suddenly safe feeling hallways.  
“Class, this is (Y/N) Messer, she’s our new transfer student.” He stated, Ishiyama urged me to walk closer to him. When I did, the door closed behind me, I checked and she was gone.  
“Say hello, everyone.” He commanded, his tone was light and nonthreatening, but he had that teacher vibe that meant, ‘behave and play nice’. A few students had sounded like they were happily greeting me, but most of the class mindlessly droned, “Hi, (Y/N).”  
I waved at them, and tried to keep my stare at Mr. Lancer and not the dozens of eyes that were on me. I don’t like this, I don’t think freedom and general happiness is worth going to school for.  
“All right, I won’t make you stand up here any longer, just take a seat where ever you want, we don’t have assigned seats.” Mr. Lancer kindly said.  
Hallelujah! I can ignore everyone in peace!  
I walked down the aisles and slipped into a free seat, no one directly next to me, leaning my backpack on the floor against my chair. I considered sitting up straight, but I decided against it and leaned on my elbows, resting my cheek in my open palm. As Mr. Lancer started back up the lesson where he left off before I had entered, I saw a boy in the corner of my eye twist his neck to get a better look at me. I didn’t try to steal a glance for the first couple of seconds, but I gave into the urge and dared to look over at this guy. To my surprise, I was met with striking blue eyes, owned by the boy I’m going to devote my entire year in protecting. Not a moment later had his head snapped back towards Mr. Lancer, he pretended he hadn’t been looking at me.  
Jokes on you, kid, it’s my turn to stare now.


	8. Chapter Eight - Amity

I had expected the classroom to be empty when I entered it, but I was surprised to see Mr. Lancer still sitting behind his desk, eating a sandwich in one hand and grading papers with the other.  
"First day not going so well?"  
"No, not really." I answered back, laying my plastic lunch tray down onto one of the desks, slipping into the seat.  
And, in truth, it wasn't going well.  
The lunch bell rang through a blur of classes I didn't take much interest in, and I had started searching the lunch room for Kwan after I got my food, hoping I could take a seat with him. I spotted him and waved, he did wave back, but he was given disapproving looks by the other kids at his table, to which he avoided eye contact from that point on. It hurt to be ignored by the most promising candidate for a friend.  
Speaking of friends, I figured make the best of a bad situation and sit with my newly assigned best bud for the next year, but he wasn't anywhere to be found either. After standing alone awkwardly for so long, people started to stare so I just left the cafeteria, I debated eating my lunch here or the bathroom, this option seemed less pathetic.  
Mr. Lancer looked up at me, he was staring with concern, a look I hadn't gotten much until I came here.  
"If it makes you feel any better, I didn't make any friends on my first day to a new school either, it just takes some time." He smiled sympathetically, "Don't feel too badly about it."  
I nodded, but how long would that take? Clearly, I must have been born with some sort of social repellant.  
Jeez, since when did I care about what people think? I suppose it's for the best I do, in case I need to work my way through the social chain to get to this blue-eyed wonder.  
To take my mind off the issue, I began playing with an odd mush on my tray with a plastic spork, trying to guess what it was. It's green, looks like mashed potatoes, and yet it smells like ham.  
I don't think I'm that hungry anymore.  
Instead of messing with anything else on the tray, I took the Styrofoam cup of peach slices next to an apple I grabbed on my way out of the lunchroom, and pulled The Body out of my backpack. Mr. Lancer let out a nostalgic laugh, "I remember reading that back in the 80's, it's been adapted into a movie since then."  
A movie? Huh, I may need to try to invest in a TV sometime...when I have money, that is. A little light bulb went off in my head, a thought I had been wondering for a while, "Since you know a lot about literature, why do you think so many of Stephen King's novels set in Maine?"  
Mr. Lancer seemed a bit surprised by the random question, or maybe he was surprised I caught onto the detail, and stared up at a ceiling tile in thought, "Well, King grew up in Maine, so being able to see it and experience it first hand for so long more than likely made him grow familiar with it. I actually went on a trip to Maine once with some friends and their parents when I was child on Summer break back in..."  
He paused, "1979, I believe. I don't remember much from it, but it felt very small and isolated."  
"Kind of like here." I caught myself mumble.  
Lancer didn't pay much attention to my somewhat bitter statement, and instead nodded along and continued trying to pick his brain for any more details about the trip there. He looked like he gave up trying, and with a shrug, he looked back at me. "They say that the best advice to authors is to write what you know, I take it that he understood that considering his success."  
"Yeah, I'd like to read more from him, and I like a good spook but I'm too much of a chicken to even try picking up something like IT or Carrie..." Says the kid who literally grew up around ghosts, and lived in a place called The _Ghost_ Zone. Wow, I'm a wimp.  
Mr. Lancer smiled, I could see the gears turning in his head, "Which ones have you read?"  
"The Body, Rose Madder, and Firestarter." I plopped a peach in my mouth and stole a look at the clock, two more minutes until my free period starts. I'm not sure what I'm going to do for that period, I'm not even sure if we're allowed off school grounds, can I just go home and nap for the next hour? Lancer tapped his red pen on his desk in thought, "I'd recommend reading Cujo, in that case. It's a psychological horror novel, not as scary as the rest, in my opinion at least. The school may actually have it in the library."  
Boredom problem solved; books are better than people, anyway.  
The bell blared loudly through my ears, I scooped my book into my backpack and put all the trash on the tray.  
"Thanks for the suggestion, Mr. Lancer." I said, laying the untouched apple left on my tray on his desk before I left.  
~★☆★~  
Tut, tut, you should've listened to Tad.  
What is with parents in horror novels never listening to their children? 'Oh, it's just your imagination!' are the famous last words before the kid's imaginary friend turns out to be some poltergeist and tries to kill everyone in the house. Even worse, why do they bother to stick around even when things are getting weird? By all means, stay in the house next to a literal pet cemetery, or continue going into the basement where some guy went bat-shit after an unexplained and probably murderous event.  
"Come on, use your head!" I exclaimed, rocking back from my heel on the table in the uncomfortable chair I refused to get up from. The librarian looked up at me from her thick rimmed glasses with a warning in her eyes, making me pipe down and sit like a normal person. I guess my constant commentary and chair rocking was annoying her. It's not my fault that rocking back in a chair is the closest I can get to casually floating wherever I may please. Besides the point, Cujo so far has been cheesy, frustrating and a bit silly. Lancer was right, not very creepy. I closed the book, and slipped it into my bag without another word; I left the library and roamed the hallways.  
Not a soul was journeying through the halls with me; believe me, I checked. The other students with a free period were doing other things, I assumed most were outside socializing with one another. I passed the lunchroom, now empty, say for a pair of boys sitting at a lunch table playing a card game together. This looks like a nice, quiet place to reside until the bell rings again.  
"For this to be the number one ghost city in the united states, it sure is fairly tame." I mumbled, resting my bag on the seat next to me after I sat. The boy with the curly red hair turned around, "Don't get used to it, this is just a quiet day, you don't even want to know how bad the damage can get."  
He pointed at a clear tarp taped to cover a massive hole in the wall, the students outside were blurry figures walking around through the plastic, "That was from a ghost dragon attack."  
"Holy shit, a ghost _dragon_ did that?"  
The two boys nodded, the curly haired boy spoke again, "I'm Nathan, and that's Mikey." I turned my full attention back over to them, showing off a sweet smile.  
"I'm (Y/N), nice to meet you both."  
Mikey and Nathan went back to their game and I continued reading for a bit, enjoying the silence once more. As much as I would've loved to let that silence continue, something had been bugging me since first period and I couldn't stop thinking about it. I needed a name for the face, I can't keep calling him random nicknames I can't keep track of.  
"Hey, um..."  
How do I ask this without sounding creepy?  
The two of them turned to me again, waiting for me to continue. I took a quick breath, "There's a boy in my class, do you guys know who he is?"  
Mikey laid his cards face-down on their table, to ensure that Nathan wouldn't get a peek at his hand; Nathan did the same and looked at me expectantly.  
"What does he look like?"  
"He has really blue eyes-"  
Nathan and Mikey didn't seem to need to have any more information beyond that, based on their knowing expressions. The two shared a look with each other, Nathan even looked a little smug when he stated,  
"That would be, Danny Fenton."  
~★☆★~  
Danny Fenton. My blue-eyed boy wonder finally has a name.  
Funnily enough, I've finally gathered more information about him from Nathan and Mikey. Apparently, Danny Fenton is considered a loser around here, which makes things both easier and harder. Being a loser means accepting other people into your group more easily, but also being shy and hesitant of peers, and I'm sure he's going to be a lot more hesitant of me when he has that secret to keep.  
Well, better to start breaking through sooner than later.  
But how do you just walk up to someone and casually start a friendship?  
"Hey, (Y/N)!"  
I looked over my shoulder and stopped walking, "Kwan?"  
He grabbed my arm and pulled me to the side of the hall, the abundance of students that were pushing past me were now walking around the two of us while straining their necks to see who he was talking to. Kwan smiled at me and released my arm. "I have good news."  
"What's your definition of good news?"  
He laughed at my comment, I don't think he picked up the tone of how I said it. That, or he was dismissing it.  
"I've been talking to my friends, the A-Listers. It took a lot of convincing, but they said that we can be seen together as long as I'm okay with whatever happens to my reputation because of you."  
 _What?_  
"What's that supposed to mean?"  
"It means we get to hang out and they'll be cool with it! Isn't that great?"  
That wasn't the part of that sentence I was focusing on.  
I bit the inside of my cheek when he smiled again. Well, I guess being friends with Kwan would be kind of fun. He seems nice enough, for the most part, and it's not like I could hang out with my English teacher after school hours without it being super weird and inappropriate. I took a deep breath in and smiled back at him, "Yeah, that is really great, Kwan. Want to go somewhere if you don't have anything to do?"  
"Absolutely!"  
Well, if Kwan sticks around and we can stay on good terms, that’ll be fine. Even if he doesn’t, at least this experience will give me some social practice.


	9. Chapter Nine - Affinity

I've never been one to find destruction fun.  
As a child, I was well behaved for the most part. I spent most of my time reading, drawing, helping Clockwork, just generally being quiet. I never saw appeal in hurting my own eardrums for the sake of entertainment. Yet, somehow, the concept of flinging an excessively heavy ball at pins from an unreasonable distance is _thrilling _.__  
And so is yelling at the top of your lungs when you win, "STRIKE!"  
I shouted and threw my fist into the air. Kwan gawked, "Are you sure you've never been bowling before?"  
I couldn't hide my giddiness, it was the third in a row that I made this round, previously Kwan had to explain that it was called a strike and not a hole in one. Right idea, wrong game. I checked my nails sassily, smiling up at him with a cocky grin. "I guess I just have more skill." Winning isn't everything, of course, I was raised better than that...  
Except for the moments that I win and then all manners go out the window. I can't help it, it feels so great, the rush I have is putting me on cloud nine.  
"Wipe that smile off your face, I'm just getting warmed up."  
"For the past hour and half?"  
"Perfection takes time."  
I scoffed and sat at the table across from the bowling ball dispenser, taking a long, slow sip from my soda. It had dew droplets on the outside, tasted flat and the ice watered most of it down, but I wasn't going to complain when I wasn't even the one paying for this whole bowling idea.  
Kwan sat across from me, pulling a face when he took a drink from his own soda. I guess we'd been so caught up in the game that we'd forgotten to take breaks here and there.  
"Are you getting bored?"  
I shook my head.  
"It's a little boring." Kwan confirmed his thoughts to himself.  
It's _exhilarating _.__  
Cocking an eyebrow, I clarified the what he was meaning, "You mean that you're bored of losing?"  
"Exactly."  
I pull my straw out of the cup and pucker my lips, attempting to balance the straw above my cupid's bow.  
"Do you want to pick what we do next?"  
Can we even top bowling?  
"Nah, you pick again."  
Kwan looked off in thought while I stuck my straw back into the cup and waited.  
"Food?" He finally suggested.  
Okay, I was wrong, we can top bowling.  
~★☆★~  
When a franchise has the brand name The Nasty Burger and the slogan, "Nasty is just one letter away from tasty" is incredibly misleading, for a fast food joint, the food is pretty damn good. It made me wonder why they didn't just call it The Tasty Burger.  
I popped a curly fry into my mouth and slouched in the booth, "Favorite color?"  
"Green."  
The color of growth, nature, money, envy and greed. Somehow, I can't imagine Kwan as the greedy type. Sure, he's got it, but he doesn't act like the kind of person to wave it in people's faces. But, looks are deceiving I suppose. After all, by the way I look, I'm sure no one would be able to guess that I came from the Ghost Zone. I hope not, at least.  
"You?"  
"(F/C)."  
"Where'd you move from?"  
Shit.  
Shit, shit, shit, shit, shit, shit, shit, shit! Think, you idiot! Say something!  
Kwan blinked at me, and I looked away dramatically to buy myself a few seconds.  
"I'm from Castle Rock, in Maine."  
I hope Kwan doesn't read Stephen King books.  
Kwan nodded understandably and focused on eating for a bit, not that I can blame him, this stuff is good. Amity Park itself isn't so bad, either.  
"Your turn to ask me a question."  
"Okay, well...how do you make friends?"  
Kwan looked taken aback by my question. Was that too bold? He probably assumes I've been going to public schools and know all this, or have some form of social skills. I tried to read Kwan's expression the best I could, eyebrows raised, eyes wide and unblinking, he looked frozen. He shook himself out of it though, standing up and tossing his head to the door in gesture for me to follow.  
I can't leave my food.  
I have a nearly empty fridge at home, this has so much potential. It can be dinner, a midnight snack, breakfast, brunch, lunch, the possibilities are endless.  
With that thought in mind, I wrapped up my half-eaten burger before I pushed it hard into my pocket and held my cardboard box of curly fries tightly, protectively. I put my backpack back on while Kwan eyed me, like I was being strange, as we head to the door. We walked on the sidewalk for a few minutes, before entering central park.  
"You want to know how to make friends, right?"  
I nod, our feet leading us to the pond in the center of the land, white ducks settled gracefully on top of it had spotted us, better yet, my fries. Their fluffed chubby bodies scrambled across the water to get a taste of them. I try to hide them behind my back, but it's too late, a few of them had already waddled out of the water and were trying to surround me.  
"I have some pointers for you, then."  
I wait for him to continue, doing my best to ignore the ducks' intimidation tactics. Kwan takes a seat a couple feet behind us on a wooden bench, I do the same next to him, and of course the ducks took this as an invitation to nudge my legs with desperation. Isn't there an old man somewhere to feed them somewhere?  
"Well, I met my best friend Dash in a really strange way back in kindergarten, I was new to town and didn't have anyone to talk to. I had a loose tooth I was trying to work out with my tongue all day during class, by the time recess came around, I had almost gotten it out. Dash bumped into me on the playground, and my tooth fell backwards into my mouth and it got stuck between two of my front teeth. One of them was loose too, which was how it got stuck in between them in the first place."  
My face contorted, silently wishing he spared some of the gory details.  
"Dash saw me hold my mouth because it hurt so much, and asked to look in to see how stuck my tooth was," Kwan laughed a little to himself, "And before I could ask what he was doing, he stuck his whole hand into my mouth and pulled it out. Thing is, it was loose, but it was the wrong tooth. He had grabbed the loose tooth in the front, not the one that was stuck, and with the force he used, it dislodged my stuck loose tooth and fell onto the grass."  
I think my face turned red from holding keeping a laugh lodged in my throat, it was so gross but I couldn't help but smile. It almost distracted me from one of the ducks chewing on the cuff of my jeans, I gave up my hard attitude and tossed a few fries on the ground. If they were hungry enough to attempt eating denim while someone was wearing it, they deserve something for their dedication.  
"We were best friends all the way up until middle school, he got popular then and we had a falling out...anyway, my point is, sometimes finding friends is just a happy accident, it's unplanned and it leads to something great. I had no idea who Dash was before that day, and I wouldn't have ever met him if he hadn't been so determined on helping me, we would've missed all the great times we've had together. And besides, I got five dollars for those because I lost two in the same day, so it was worth having one ripped out."  
I didn't hold back my laugh this time, just the way Kwan had said it in such a light-hearted tone, it made it uncontainable. Though the falling out he had mentioned concerned me, he looked happy to see me smile. When I controlled myself, I tossed a handful of fries out to the ducks, they'd been wagging their tails and quacking expectedly for another food drop.  
"Do me a favor and just, don't stress about fitting in or being in a rush to find good friends." Kwan said suddenly and seriously. When I make eye contact with him, I see a flash of an emotion in them that I couldn't put my finger on. I start to tell him 'okay' dismissively, but he stops me.  
"I mean it. You'll eventually find your own group of friends that you'll click with, it'll feel welcoming and amazing. And until you do find them, don't feel like you can't come to me for anything," He smiles genuinely, "I'm here for you."  
I don't know what to say. I don't know how to speak. I don't think I can force out words, I just sit there staring at him, at a loss.  
I try to smile back at him, but my bottom lip quivers. Kwan takes notice of it, and pulls me into a hug.  
And I gladly return the gesture.  
~★☆★~  
"Yeah, that's actually my parents' store over there." Kwan suddenly pointed out during our conversation as we walked. I looked, and he was pointing at the little pet store on the corner a few streets away from mine. After spending hours at the park, just talking by the pond, it started to get dark. Kwan kindly offered to walk me home, and I accepted partly because I didn't want to walk home alone in the dark, and mostly because I enjoyed his company.  
"Really? I love that place, I go in there all the time but I've never seen anyone over the age of sixteen manning the register."  
"My Dad is usually working in the back with the finances, and my Mom drops by once every couple of weeks to do a routine check up on them. She's a veterinarian, she actually works at the clinic downtown."  
When we rounded the corner and crossed, we kept walking for a few minutes before I saw my house from a distance away. I cringe a little, but I'm thankful the sun has set, it's more of an eyesore in the daylight. In the daytime, you can practically see it crumbling and caving in on itself, but at night, it just looks unsettlingly creepy.  
"Hey, maybe that can be your first job!"  
"Kwan, I'm uncoordinated, socially awkward and have zero experience in anything professionally. Besides, I don't even have a resume to give anyone, because again, no experience at all."  
"But you at least need money to buy a bike or a scooter so you don't have to walk everywhere."  
"I'm fine walking, really."  
I'd rather have a full stomach and keep the electricity on in my house.  
"No ifs, ands or buts, I'm talking to my Dad tonight about getting you hired."  
Maybe bringing up not having a lot of money to Kwan earlier on the walk home was a mistake.  
"I'm not sure how comfortable I am with you schmoozing me to your Dad for a job."  
"It's not schmoozing, it's just...chatting you up to get you the position."  
"That's exactly what schmoozing is." I say and slow my walking pace, Kwan takes this as a hint that the house next to him is mine so he starts walking up the driveway. I kept walking though, and Kwan made it up my neighbor's front door when I got to unlock mine.  
"Kwan, what are you doing? I live over here."  
Kwan had a deer in headlights look on his face, quickly rushing away from the door and across my yard.  
"Wait, you live here?" He asked, walking up the steps.  
I confirmed his question by swinging the door open with more force than I had intended.  
"I am _definitely _talking to my Dad about you getting a job there." Kwan mused out loud, and I feel a sudden wave of embarrassment wash over me before disappeared when he smiled and said, "Want to eat lunch together tomorrow?"__  
"If I can find you, sure." I answer and he laughs, I recognize it as an uncomfortable, guilty laugh for ignoring me at school today, and he knows by my tone that I wasn't joking. Kwan takes a few steps back, looking like he's about to leave, so I turn around and start to walk inside.  
"Hey!"  
I turn back around, and Kwan grins at me from the sidewalk, "Have a good night, (Y/N), I'll see you tomorrow. I'm looking forward to it."  
I can't think of anything else less repetitive to say, or a better way to respond to his polite kindness than, "Me, too."  
When I'm sure he's walking away for good this time, I close the door and lock it. I put my burger inside the fridge, in retrospect I could've put it in my backpack from school instead of shoving it into my pocket. Changing into my pajamas and curling up into my bed, I flick on the lamp on the bedside table, and took the Cujo book out of my backpack.  
Pulling Patch underneath my arm, resting my chin on his head. I pulled the bookmark out of the paged and laid it next to my leg,  
"Hey, Patch…I had a good day today."


End file.
